Improvement in fences



NF'ETERS, PHOTO LITHOGRAPHE UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

B. F. ALLISON, OF WEST DAYTON, IOWA.

IMPROVEMENT IN FENCES.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 37,729, dated February 24, 1863.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, B. F. ALLISON, of West A Dayton, in the county of Webster and State of Iowa, have invented a new and Improved Field Fence; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this specification., in which Figure 1 represents a face view of my invention. Fig. 2 is a plan or top view of the same. Fig. 3 is a detached plan ot one kind of clamps used for securing the adjoining parts. Fig. 4 is a side elevation of another clamp, andfor the same purpose as that shown in Fig. 3.

Similar letters of reference in all the views indicate corresponding parts.

The object of this invention is to produce a light and durable fence which can be easily put up or taken down 5 and it relates to an irnprovement in that class of fences the panels of which 'are arranged in a zigzag line, and which are commonly termed worm-fences.

The invention consists in the arrangement of a clamp with a double-shouldered recess in the middle and with two recesses in the ends, in combination with mortises in the end battens of two adjoining panels, and with two secondary battens next to the end battens-one on either of two adjoining panels-and with a key retaining said clamps in the mortises in such a manner that by turning the clamp up edgewise and after inserting it into said mortises up to its middle and turning it down flat the shoulders of the double-shouldered recess catch over the edges of the mortise and retain the end battens, and at the same time the recesses at the ends of the clamp catch over the secondary battens, and the panels are thereby firmly held in the desired position in relation to each other.

It consists, further, in the employment of a notched clamp, in combination with mortises cut in the end battens, and with secondary battens-one on either side of the two endbattens of adjoining panels-and with a key retainingsaid clamp in the mortises in such a manner that on introducing the clamp into said mortises until the notch in its edge catches over their edges the ends of the clamp bear on the secondary battens, and by the combined action of the notch on the end battens and of the ends of the clamp on the secondary battens the adjoining panels are firmly held in position.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe it with reference to the drawings.

The panels A B C are constructed of a series of horizontal boards or rails, a b c, and uprights or battens a* c* b* b* c* c'it, which are secured to the boards at the desired points by nails or screws, or by any other suitable means.

The end battens a* b* c* are strengthened by posts which are secured to the ends of the panels A B C on the sides opposite to the end battens, a* b* et, as clearly shown in Fig. 2 of n the drawing. These posts form essential parts of the end battens, and in the following description they will be treated as the end battens themselves. The edges of said end battens, the ends of the boards, and those sides of the posts which face-each other when the fence is put up are so shaped that by bringing said edges, ends, and faces together so that the same join each other the adjoining panels assume an angular position, as clearly shown in Fig. 2 of the drawings.

The panels are held in position by clamps D E, detached views of which are represented in Figs.3 and of thedrawings. The clamp D is provided with a central recess, d, produced by cutting down from both edges so as to obtain double shoulders d', and the ends of said clamp are providedr with recesses dit. When two panels are in position, the clamp D is turned up edgewise, and thus introduced up to the middle of its length into niortises f in the end battens, and they are then turned down fiat. By this operation the double shoulders d of the recess d catch over the edges of the mortises j', and the recesses d* in the ends of the clamp catch over the secondary battens, as clearly shown in Fig.2, and thereby the two panels are retained in the desired angular position in relation to each other.

The clamp E, a detached side elevation of which is shown in Fig. 4, is provided with a notch in its edge, at about the middle of its 1ength,and this clamp is introduced into morti ses g in the end battens of the adjoining panels, so that the notch ecatches over the edges of said mortises and .the ends of the clamps on the secondary battens, as clearly shown in Fig. 2.

The clamps D E are secured in the mortises f g by Wedges or keys h i, and the ends of each pair of panels are fastened together by means of two clamps, D E, as shown in Fig.

l. Instead of using; both kinds of clamps,v

however, either oi' the two kinds might be used throughout. When properly applied, these clamps retain the panels firmly in position, and the Whole fence can be put up or taken down with little labor and in any desired locality.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, and desireto secure by etters Patent, is-

1. The arrangement of the double-shoulspecified.

B. F. ALLISON. Witnesses:

4 JOHN BAKER,

ELI S. GEYER. 

